Sweet Records
by AmethystR5
Summary: Ally likes a guy by the name of Austin at her local record store. He's in a band.
1. In The Record Store

**A/N: Long time, no publish? I'm no good at jokes haha. Anyway it's 2013! Sorry for no recent stories I've been a little busy with school. I thought it'd be a good time to publish a story since I'm on winter break still. Enjoy. I own nothing!**

"No way. That is the stupidest idea I have ever heard." It's a big call, but Ally thinks it's a fair one. "There's no way I'm buying a Whitney Houston CD from the hot guy at the record store."

"You want him to notice you right?" Trish's spinning sugar packets across the table as she talks. They're smushed into a booth at an old diner and Ally can't keep still. She's already finished her coffee but she doesn't have enough money left to buy another one.

"Yeah, but not because he thinks I have tragic taste in music."

"Tell him it's for your sister." Trish is just not taking this seriously at all.

"Hello, Trish? I don't have sister."

"He doesn't know that. Besides, put Dallas in a dress - I think he'd pass." Trish's grinning like a loon.

"Oh thanks, Trish." Ally's voice is dripping sarcasm. Now there's a mental image she just didn't need.

The really annoying part is that Trish, to some degree, is right. Ally can't just keep hanging around at Sweet Records hoping Austin (well, that's the name on his lanyard) will notice her. Ally's spent more money on CD's in the past month than she usually would in a year and she has yet to breach the two-sentence customer conversation limit with the afore-mentioned hot record store employee.

At first Ally actually had some CD's she'd needed to buy. Then there were a few back catalogue items from favorite bands that she probably wouldn't have bought if it wasn't going to give her a reason to cross Austin's path, but whatever, it's not like she won't listen to them. Maybe it was slightly stalkerish of her to buy The Ramones album without hearing them first just because Austin once wore one of their t-shirts. But buying a second copy of Of Monsters And Men's My Head Is An Animal just in case her current copy gets scratched or lost is starting to push the boundaries of what even Ally can justify as normal and reasonable behavior.

So this is how she ends up back at Sweet the following Saturday (because Austin works Tuesday through Saturday and Ally knows this and she knows that knowing this makes her kind of creepy but hey, whatever). She's wandering the aisles with a copy of Whitney Houston's Whitney tucked as far up under her arm as she can because she's still not sure if she can bear the thought of being seen with it.

After doing about three laps around the store and staring blankly at the racks like she's seeking divine intervention, she realizes that if she doesn't purchase something and leave soon she's really going to look like a creeper. So she trudges up to the counter, feeling a hot blush creeping up her cheeks before she's even placed the CD in front of the object of her fixation.

Austin's leaning over the counter, all attention focused on the staff computer. He's looking hot which is no surprise as it's his natural state. He's in his usual uniform of a band t-shirt and jeans which leaves just enough of his skin exposed that Ally finds it infinitely distracting. Although Austin could probably be covered from head to toe in a cloak and a balaclava and Ally would still find it distracting. Actually a balaclava might even be kind of sexy on Austin. Ally gives herself a mental shake that shivers over her shoulders and down her torso. This is not the time to be thinking about that.

Once the CD is on the counter it takes an immense effort for Ally to remove her hands from the case because she's intensely dreading the moment when Austin sees the cover. Despite Trish's master plan, at this point in time Ally is hoping Austin won't notice she's purchasing an eighties R&B pop album, even though that is the point of the whole exercise.

Finally Austin's attention turns from the computer to the CD on the counter and then to the customer standing before him trying very hard not to fidget.

"That's not for you is it?" Austin asks, one of his eyebrows quirked up over those gorgeous hazel eyes that Ally is having trouble meeting right now.

Ally turns a deep shade of pink, muttering. "No. No it's uh... for my sister."

"Oh good." Austin smiles then and Ally dies a little at the sight. He has a really gorgeous smile. "You usually have such good taste, it would be a bit disappointing."

Ally manages a rather forced smile back even though she feels like her face is on fire and she's certain she's sweating now. How attractive.

"Ah. Thanks." Ally chokes out. Wow this is going really well. What a conversationalist she is. She can't keep looking at Austin, it's just messing with her concentration. She lets her gaze fall to the counter and finds herself staring absently at a flyer. And she must be hallucinating because she's even seeing Austin's face on the paper too. Hang on, that is Austin's face, along with four others and the words "Tonight Alive" emblazoned across the top.

Ally snatches up the flyer, "Hey, is this you?" The words are out of her mouth before even registering with her brain.

Ally looks up from the page and Austin's wearing that killer smile again, "Yep, that's my band Tonight Alive." Ally needs a moment here because the hot record store guy is in a band and that just increases the intensity of his hotness to incinerating levels.

"Cool." Ally's grinning like a little kid with an ice cream cone.

"We're playing the Radio Lounge with R5 on Thursday if you're interested. I think we'd be right up your alley."

Ally's trying really hard to remind herself that guys who are in bands spend their entire lives pimping their gigs out to anyone who'll listen and she really shouldn't read too far into this. She can't help herself though, she's grinning wide and blushing like she just got asked to prom.

"Um. Yeah, sure I might check it out." she stammers awkwardly, clutching the flyer. Never mind her fear of crowds and mild agoraphobia. Never mind that the flyer's got the gig as being ten dollars which she wont even have after she's wasted her last fifteen on a CD she doesn't want.

A CD that Austin's now picking up off the counter and zapping with the barcode machine.

"Actually-" Ally makes a half-hearted grab for the CD, aborting it before it really begins. "I don't think I'll take that... Dall-ah, Darcy can buy her own damn CD's."

"You sure?" Austin's still clutching the CD, eyebrows raised in question.

"Yeah." Ally can feel her skin burning. She's trying really hard to hide behind her hair. "Don't worry about it. I'll uh... I'll leave it." She's flapping her hand way too emphatically, so she drops it down to her side like a dead fish.

"Okay, if you're sure." Austin flips over the CD jewel case. "Actually you know it looks like the case is cracked." Ally watches with a kind of horror as Austin pops the case open and pulls out the CD, studying the back of it. "Well look at that, there's a scratch on the disc too. It's damaged stock. I could give it to you for a discount. Say, five dollars?"

Austin's grinning at her like they're sharing a secret and Ally just wants to melt into the floor. Something's going on and she's not sure what it is but it's making her insides tumble and turn and she just can't get her brain to work with Austin smiling at her like that.

There's something hopeful and conspiratorial in Austin's grin and suddenly there's just no question of Ally not agreeing with whatever the cute guy wants. Before she knows it she's handing over a five with numb fingers and then presto, she's the proud owner of such hits as "I Wanna Dance With Somebody". Under normal circumstances this would be cause for alarm, but Austin's still smiling secretly at Ally and even though it's making her tremble a little, it's just about the best thing in the entire world.

"Ah thanks. That's... uh. Thanks." Ally is torn between wanting to soak up Austin's presence, memorize that brilliant smile and the overwhelming urge to run away very fast before she either dies of embarrassment or faints. She settles for backing away slowly. This seems to work until her back hits something solid, which turns out to be the punk section. It rattles but thankfully nothing breaks. Ally flushes red again and gives her best attempt at a smile at a very amused looking Austin, who looks like he's trying really hard not laugh.

At that point Ally decides to cut her losses and walk out of the store facing forwards, her expression falling into a grimace the moment she turns away from Austin. Jesus, she is just such a complete and total loser.

She's nearly to the safety of the outside of the store, completely free of further incidents when she hears Austin's voice over the piped music.

"See you at the show, yeah?"

Trying her very best for casual she throws back over her shoulder, "Yeah, see you there." But the act of turning mid-sentence throws her slightly off course and she winds up slamming her shoulder on the doorframe on her way out. It hurts a lot, but she tries really hard not to show it until she's outside the store with the door safely closed behind her. Then she jumps around and clutches her shoulder and swears. A lot.

Her shoulder is hurting, she just made herself look like ten different flavors of idiot and she's clutching a flyer in her hand for a gig she's really not sure she can go to, which will cost her last ten dollars and Austin will be so busy performing he won't even see her if she does make it.

But somehow she's still smiling, because that was at least a six sentence conversation, Austin gave her a discount, and said she had good taste in music. Good freaking taste.

There's just going to be no living with Trish when she hears about this.

**A/N: Alright, so let me clear a few things up. I don't hate Whitney, I actually adore her. R.I.P Whitney. Another thing is that Tonight Alive is an actual band! I dunno why I made Dallas Ally's brother. I heard Laura likes Of Monsters And Men somewhere that's why I included it. Please review so I know you guys interested in this story. I will be putting up more chapters.. Not sure how much though!**

**Have a great day :D!**


	2. The Concert

Ally is so concerned about getting to the gig on time that she ends up at the venue two hours early. Not wanting to look like an over eager groupie, she hides out at a diner across the road, scrounging together enough loose change to purchase a coffee which she nurses for at least forty-five minutes.

She tried to convince Trish to come with her, but Trish apparently has better things to do than chaperone her socially awkward friend on her not-date with the hot record store guy. Dallas just sniffed at her and to be honest Ally was a bit relieved he didn't want to come because no matter how passable Trish thinks Dallas might be, Ally doesn't really want to see her brother in a dress.

She glances across the street to the venue, and the doors aren't even open yet. How did she manage to get here so early? Luckily she brought her song book with her. She digs it out and opens it, doodling across the page whatever shapes her hand feels like forming. She does not sketch Austin's face, or his hands, or any part of him really, because that would be creepy.

She glances up from her smiley faces and music notes from time to time to check on the venue. Eventually the doors open, but Ally doesn't even consider getting up to leave until she sees a steady flow of people crossing the threshold.

When she does get inside the venue, it's dark and loud and stinks of stale beer. She hands over her last ten dollars in exchange for a stamp on her wrist. She's flat broke now, not even enough money for a soft drink, so she finds a dark corner to loiter in and waits for the gig to start.

Tonight Alive are up first, playing support, so they barely get a lukewarm reaction when they take the stage. It doesn't seem to phase the band, though, and they deliver an enthusiastic, if slightly loose set. The best part is that Ally can stare at Austin all she likes and not have to worry about looking weird. Austin looks damn hot on stage too, belting out lyrics into the mic and handling his guitar with a slightly pinched look of concentration.

Ally claps and even hollers a bit when they wind up their set. Hot guy or no hot guy, they were actually pretty good. The venue packed out a little fatter as they were playing so the response is warmer now and Austin's smiling down at the crowd as he thanks them. He's shiny with sweat and flushed from standing under the hot lights and Ally is a little bit in love.

When Austin leaves the stage, carrying his own gear, Ally's private peep-fest is over and her throat's feeling scratchy from all the yelling, so she heads for the bar. The bartender openly glares when she asks for a glass of water, but what does Ally care? It's not like she's a regular who needs to make friends with the bar staff.

She's wondering if maybe it's time for her to slip away, since there won't be anymore Austin action on stage, when she feels a tap on her shoulder. She turns, wondering if maybe she's being asked to leave since she has no intention of spending any money over the bar. It's not a bouncer, it's Austin, and he's smiling that heart-stopping smile at Ally. Words are out of reach at this point.

"So you made it?" Austin is asking.

"Ah... yeah. Well. Yeah." Ally tries to smile but it feels more like a baring of teeth. She feels warm, flushed and a bit jittery. "Good, um... performance up there."

"Thanks." Austin smiles again and signals the bartender with a wave of his hand, asking for a beer. The bartender hands one to Austin and then recommences glaring at Ally.

"Another water?" He scowls. Ally just smiles meekly and waves her hand over her empty glass.

"No thanks, I'm good."

"You're drinking water?" Austin makes it sound like an abomination of the highest degree. Ally winces internally but fights out an answer.

"I uh... forgot my money. Starving student, you know?" Somehow she winds up doing jazz hands as she says this. It's certainly not intentional.

Austin chuckles and rolls his eyes. He then calls the bartender (who's turned the scowl level up to eleven by this point) back over, and orders another beer which he hands to Ally.

"Thanks." Ally takes the beer reverently, knowing she's grinning too hard. She reminds herself it's an alcoholic beverage not a bouquet of flowers, but she's pretty pleased just the same.

Austin chinks his bottle to Ally's and takes a swig. Ally follows suit, taking a long swallow as she rapidly chases thoughts around her head trying to think of something to say to Austin. She needs to keep some conversation going because she's not ready to lose Austin's presence just yet.

Her half-baked conversation topics turn out to be entirely unnecessary. Before she has a chance to get a word out, two heavily pierced and tattooed guys appear out of the darkness and start talking at Austin. Ally appears to be invisible to them, possibly due to her lack of needle-induced body art. She hovers nearby for a little while, but when it becomes obvious they're not leaving anytime soon she drifts further down the bar and away from their cosy little group.

Ally slumps back against the bar and sighs, taking another swallow of her beer. Well, it was fun while it lasted. She'll finish her drink and call Dallas to come and get her. It was pretty naive of her to expect much more than a quick "thanks for coming" conversation from Austin anyway. He really is out of Ally's league.

She's swirling the last of her beer in the bottle, watching the bubbles rise when she feels someone slide in beside her, leaning against the bar.

"Sorry dude, rabid fans, you know?" Ally looks up at Austin and very nearly spits her beer. She forces herself to swallow what's left in her mouth and coughs a little before saying,

"No, that's fine. Bet that happens all the time, yeah?" Ally is very proud of herself for getting the words out without dying. Internally she's got a pretty intense mix of excitement/panic going on because holy shit, Austin came back. Austin is still talking to her. She's not quite sure how to handle this yet.

Austin's smothering a chuckle into his shirtsleeve. "Oh yeah, I'm such a rockstar. I can barely sleep for the screaming. We must have oh... seven fans now?" He glances up at Ally with a quirked eyebrow and it's the first time Ally notices he's not all confidence. His mouth is twisted at the side in a self deprecating smirk and his eyes are unsure.

"Well make it eight now." Ally smiles shyly. "You guys were pretty good."

"Thanks." The thousand-watt smile Ally gets from Austin is so worth it.

Austin still doesn't leave. This is simply amazing to Ally. She keeps waiting for it to happen, steeling herself for it, but it doesn't. They talk about music and Austin buys another round but most importantly he doesn't politely end the conversation and walk off.

When R5 takes the stage Austin wraps his fingers around Ally's wrist and drags her into the mosh pit and even though every part of Ally's brain is screaming get out, she doesn't even panic. Austin doesn't stop until they're right down in front and Ally is smushed up against Austin's back, and somehow this is okay. Ally can handle being packed in with the strange bodies, because she's pushed up against Austin, with Austin's belt-studs pressing into her hips and her nose full of Austin's hair that smells like a fresh summer breeze and sweat.

It's even better than okay. Especially the times when Austin turns around and grabs Ally's head to yell something into her ear over the gig roar. Most of the time Ally can't even understand what he's saying, but it doesn't matter. Austin's head is so close it's brushing her and the feel of Austin's fingers pressing into Ally's skin is sending heat zings down her back and it's all good. It's all so freaking good.

As far as Ally is concerned, the gig could go on for hours, days.

Sadly it has to finish sometime, so after screaming for an encore and getting two more songs, the lights go up and Ally has to peel her body from Austin's and try to be at peace with the knowledge that this is going to end now. Austin's going to say goodnight or "see you around" and then Ally will have to find some more CD's to buy if she wants to see him again. Maybe she could sell some of her own and then replace them with new copies.

Except Austin's not saying goodnight, he's handing her another beer and introducing her to a couple of the guys from R5. They all chat for a while and Ally even manages to make a few contributions to the conversation and it's strangely not weird that Ally is there, with these band guys. Ally, the strange music student who's not good with people is actually drinking and talking and laughing with these guys and holy shit she seems to even be enjoying herself. It has to be Austin, she figures. Something about Austin is making this work, though she's not sure what and she's not sure if she wants to think about it too much because it just makes her want Austin around on a permanent basis and that's entirely out of the question.

When the R5 guys need to make tracks, Austin and Ally help them lug their gear out. Then it's just the two of them again and Ally is amazed that they haven't run out of things to talk about yet. When Austin orders another round and the bartender openly glares at them, Ally glances around, finally noticing the venue is nearly empty. It must be late. She glances at her watch.

"Jesus, it's 2am!"

"You gotta be somewhere?" Austin's asking as he hands Ally a final beer. That unsure look is back, crinkling Austin's brow as he chews his lip.

"No, no." Ally's words come out in a rush. "It's just... late, you know?" Then Ally remembers, muttering under her breath. "Fuck, Dallas's going to kill me."

"Dallas?" Austin's asking, brow now double creased and he actually looks concerned.

"My brother." The words are out before Ally has a chance to think of the consequences. She winces internally and hopes like hell that Austin doesn't notice and think it's weird that she supposedly has a brother named Dallas and a sister named Darcy. It doesn't seem to click immediately though, Austin's only response is a visible loosening of his limbs, and his brow unfurrows.

"I hope he's still up, he's my ride home." Ally starts scrabbling in her various pockets and bag for her phone. "It's weird he hasn't called..." Finally she finds it, pulling it out to see the screen displaying three missed calls. "Oh. He did." There are also two text messages, the second one stating categorically and with the use of several colorful words that Ally can find her own way home tonight, thank you very much, and something about the importance of sleep.

Ally starts running through her options, since she is now broke and stranded. Calling Trish is top of the list and hitchhiking is also a possibility, but before she gets to option three Austin cuts in.

"Do you need a ride home?"

Ally snaps out of her internal debate and looks at Austin. Gorgeous, hot, plays-in-a-band, works-in-a-record-store Austin, who is offering Ally a ride home. Maybe it's the beer but it feels like the world just slowed down a little and somehow in the last three seconds Ally wound up in the wrong life. Somehow she ended up with the life where a hot guy is offering her a lift home and that is so incredibly far from her personal normal she can barely comprehend it.

"Um. Yeah?" She's so unsure her answer comes out as a question.

"Come on then."

Then she's trailing Austin backstage, Austin's throwing cables around his neck and handing her a guitar to carry while he lugs an amp out to the parking lot. They load up Austin's ancient silver-black station wagon with gear before climbing in themselves, then they're on the road and Ally is directing Austin to her place.

The street is quiet and deserted when they pull up outside the Dawson household. The windows are all dim. Ally looks back from the house to Austin in the driver's seat.

"Thanks for the ride." For some reason being in the close proximity of the car with Austin has brought all of Ally's nerves rushing back.

"No problem. Thanks for coming out." Austin got his killer smile on and Ally's heart is racing. She's far from drunk but the alcohol in her bloodstream is making her brain click over with thoughts of things she'd like to say.

She struggles with the door release but it wont budge.

"Sorry, you're trapped. The catch is broken." Austin's giving her a sly smile. Ally's thinking maybe being trapped in a car with Austin isn't such a bad thing if he's going to keep looking at her like that, when Austin reaches for his own door handle saying, "I'll let you out."

Ally holds very still and watches Austin open the driver door and get out. He rounds the front of the car to stand outside Ally's door and gives it a solid thump with his hip before reaching for the handle and cracking the door open. It gives with a groan and Ally starts to get out but is caught tight across her chest with the seatbelt she's still wearing. Damn it. Hoping Austin didn't notice, she quickly releases the catch, disentangles herself and climbs out.

Austin's holding the car door open like some kind of valet, the streetlight painting a halo around his head. Ally's breath catches a little because he looks so damned good. She's not sure what to say but she feels like she should say something so she tries,

"Thanks for letting me know about the gig. I had a good night." She's having trouble meeting Austin's eyes and the whole thing is feeling a little bit like a date all of a sudden and Ally reminds herself very solidly that it is not. She's lucky Austin took pity on her and gave her a ride and she really needs to stop behaving like a teenager. This is most certainly not a date.

"And thanks for the ride." she adds, peering out from behind her hair at Austin and maybe she's imagining it but Austin is looking almost as nervous as she is which makes no sense at all to Ally, because what does Austin have to be nervous about?

Except Austin is looking nervous, and he's sidling closer to Ally and Ally is barely able to breathe because Austin's not stopping when he hits Ally's personal space. He's leaning in closer, until Ally can feel his body heat and see every detail of his eyelashes which are falling closed as he tilts his head down and presses his lips to Ally's.

**A/N: Cliffhanger! Woo! Please review :D**


	3. It was a date

Ally is so shocked she doesn't kiss back at first. She's too busy flipping out because oh my god, Austin is kissing her, what the heck? How is this even possible? Her stillness isn't stopping Austin though, he's slipping a hand up the back of Ally's neck and into her hair. Ally comes back to herself, eyes fluttering shut, lips falling soft beneath Austin's, kissing back and it's so good she could melt.

She can feel herself flushing with heat and an embarrassing noise escapes her lips. Austin takes advantage of her open mouth and gives her tongue and Ally likes it so much it's mortifying. Austin's got one hand locked in Ally's hair, the other is gripping her hip and the kiss is slow and exploratory and just searingly hot. Ally's still got both hands by her sides so she raises one and it flutters like a spastic bird for a moment before resting lightly on Austin's chest. She slips her tongue out to delicately stroke Austin's and is rewarded with a low growl from Austin which curls her toes and sends heat to her groin.

It could go on forever as far as Ally is concerned, but Austin starts to slow things down, the kiss gets lazy and Austin's fingers start to slip from Ally's hair. When Austin breaks the kiss and studies Ally's face, Ally knows she's flushed and her eyes are glazed and bright. Austin is wearing a satisfied grin and his eyes are sparkling.

"Goodnight," is all he says before he turns and ambles back to the car, leaving Ally standing on the sidewalk, burning up and confused as hell. She walks up to her house in a daze, licking her lips like she can still taste Austin on them, trying to convince herself that actually happened.

"So he bought you drinks, talked to you all night, introduced you to his friends, drove you home and kissed you goodnight?" Trish ticks each item off on her fingers as she lists them. Ally nods along miserably.

"Girl - that was a date." Trish states.

"Don't mess with me Trish. This is serious." Ally's run her hands through her hair so often now it's sticking out all around her head like a lion's mane. "I can't start thinking I've got a chance with this guy if I don't."

"Ally." Trish leans forward, placing her hands on the diner tabletop. "I know what a date is - I've been on a few, believe it or not. That was totally a date."

"Really?" Ally's eyes light up and a gleeful smile starts to tug on her lips. She really, desperately wants to believe it.

Trish leans back in the booth, all solemn and wise. "Really."

Ally chews on her lip to stop herself from smiling. She's fighting a heady excitement that's building in her chest, threatening to overpower her with glee.

"So what do I do?" she asks. Trish rolls her eyes like she can't believe Ally could be so clueless.

"It's called dating, Ally. You go on more dates. Take him to a movie or something."

Before Ally has a chance to ask any more pointless questions her phone starts ringing. She digs through her bag until she finds it, hitting send before she even glances at the number on the screen.

"Hello?"

"Hi, um, Ally? This is Austin." Ally knew it was Austin at the first word, of course, which timed exactly with when her heart started racing like a marathon runner.

"Austin, hi!" Ally's voice is coming out way too high pitched and she's not sure how to turn down the treble. Meanwhile as soon as Trish hears the name 'Austin' she starts pointing across the table at Ally mouthing "I told you" in an annoyingly smug fashion.

"So, I have a confession to make." Austin's saying, and Ally's thinking she's the one who should be making confessions what with the stalking and the lying about her sibling but anyway, Austin can go first. "I totally invaded your privacy and got your number from the work computer, from when you ordered that special import. I hope you don't mind."

"Mind? No, I don't mind, that's uh... that's fine." Ally really needs to stop talking now.

"Oh, good." She can hear the smile in Austin's voice. "So, are you free tonight?"

"Free? Tonight? Yes. I mean, yes, I'm free." Words are bursting from Ally's mouth at will, with little to no regard for decency.

"Great. We should do something." Ally is nodding at Austin's words even though she knows Austin can't see her. "I finish at six, you want to come by the store and we'll figure it out from there?"

"Yeah." Ally answers, somewhat breathily. "Yeah I'd like that. I mean, I'll see you then." She's so glad that Austin can't see her because her heart is pounding, her face is burning and she knows she's gone bright red.

"Great. Um, bye." Austin says it like a deal has been sealed and Ally barely remembers to say goodbye as well. The words are no sooner out of her mouth when Trish is laughing across the table at her,

"I told you it was a date!"

Ally tries to shush her, but it's too late. Austin heard it all and he's laughing down the phone as Ally hangs up, mortified.

Ally loiters out the front of Sweet Records for a solid five minutes, ensuring that when she goes inside it's exactly six o' clock. The store is darker than usual, some of the lights are switched off and Austin's nowhere to be seen.

"Austin?" Ally calls meekly into the empty store.

"I'm just finishing up, I'll be a minute!" Austin calls from the bowels of the store, "Make yourself comfortable if you can."

Ally sighs, relieved she's not alone, and walks down the familiar aisles. She hovers by the soundtracks rack, which stands opposite the counter. This is the spot where she first saw Austin. She remembers looking up over the rack and seeing Austin at the counter talking to a customer. He was slouched forward and leaning on his left arm while gesticulating wildly with his right. His hair was falling over one eye and one of his shirt buttons was undone. That was the beginning of Ally's obsession with Austin. It was also the day her CD collection started growing at an exponential rate.

Ally's mulling this over when Austin finally emerges from the back room. He's wearing a button-up work shirt, over a longsleever, jeans and Chucks. He looks so much better than Ally's memories of him, she can't help wetting her lips at the sight.

"Hi." The word dies on Ally's lips.

"Hey." Austin replies with a smile, taking quick steps past Ally to the front door, flipping the sign to "closed" and locking the door. He walks back to Ally, eyes sweeping over her from head to toe and back again. "You look good."

Ally can feel herself getting warm already. "Thanks." she squeaks.

She actually made something of an effort tonight. She's wearing her black and pink stripped dress and a sleeveless denim jacket **(A/N: yanno, from costumes and courage!)**.

Austin's rocking back and forth on his heels, looking at Ally like she's something he'd like to eat. "So Ally, I just wanted to point out something. Just in case you were wondering, you know." Austin's grinning mischievously as he says this. Ally just raises an eyebrow in acknowledgement and listens.

"This. Tonight." Austin steps closer as he speaks, "Is a date."

"Oh." Ally breathes. Austin is standing very close now.

"Is that okay?" Austin's asking, one eyebrow arched up and a smile quirking at his lip.

"Yeah. It's uh, good. Really good." Ally's flushed red but she's smiling very, very wide now. Austin is so close she can feel his breath on her cheeks, his eyes almost glowing in the dim room. There's nothing Ally wants more than to kiss him again and she's thinking that if this is a date, then surely that's allowed. That thought has her leaning in and finding Austin's mouth with her own and Austin's kissing back, lips firm and soft at the same time. Austin's arms loop around Ally's neck, pulling her closer and Ally's hands slide around Austin's waist and soon they're necking like a pair of teenagers.

All the hesitancy of their first kiss has evaporated. Austin is devouring Ally's mouth, his tongue licking inside and Ally sucks on it. This yields a moan from Austin and he pulls Ally closer, until they're stumbling backwards in a tangle of limbs, crashing into the Industrial section. Ally hears a couple of CDs hit the ground, but she's past caring. She slides her hands up under Austin's shirt, feeling the smooth skin of his back. Austin's got one hand in Ally's hair and the other sliding down to grip her butt, hauling her closer until their hips are pressed and it feels so good they both moan into the kiss.

It's probably getting far too heated a make-out session to be happening at Austin's place of work, but that doesn't stop him sliding a hand up Ally's shirt, resting his palm on a racing heartbeat. Ally hisses at the contact, arching in a way that presses her hips harder to Austin's, making them both wilt and pant at the increased sensation.

Austin locks a hand in Ally's hair, pulling her close for another kiss. This one is slow and lingering, and he ends it by sucking on Ally's lower lip. Ally needs to hold on tighter to Austin to stay upright. They get caught in that moment, foreheads nearly touching, hot breath feathering between them.

"We shouldn't be doing this here." Ally breathes, her voice throaty with desire.

"No, we really shouldn't." Austin barely gets the words out before he kisses Ally again, long and searching and it's making Ally's knees weak. She clings to Austin, her fingers digging into warm flesh, pressing herself against the taller man and just feeling everything she can. They savor each other's mouths for a few more moments before Ally gathers enough self control to break the kiss.

For a few long moments the store is silent except for their harsh breathing. Ally can't stop staring at Austin's mouth, his lips wet and plump.

"Come on." Austin mutters, sliding his hand out from under Ally's shirt and curling his fingers with Ally's. "We should go... somewhere."

Ally reluctantly steps away from Austin's warmth. "Where?"

"Wherever you like. Movie, dinner, gig - you call it." He squeezes Ally's fingers and starts for the door, trailing Ally behind him.

Ally tries really hard to think of something she'd rather be doing than what she was just doing a moment ago. It's not easy.

"Can we go to your the movies?" She asks Austin, which makes him stop in his tracks and turn to Ally.

"Sure." Austin says with a smirk.

**A/N: Sorry for not updating! School has returned.. I think i'm going to end the story here but if you want an extra chapter please tell me in the reviews! Bye :)**


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